Ponty
pfm Member
That’s the thing. I was quite happy with the previous arrangements, cost levels and rent. I’ve not increased the rent in 7 years but now I have to in order to cover increased costs. The only winners are the agents on a percentage.
How much is your house worth
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That’s the thing. I was quite happy with the previous arrangements, cost levels and rent. I’ve not increased the rent in 7 years but now I have to in order to cover increased costs. The only winners are the agents on a percentage.
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
But at least potential tenants see what the cost to them is, from the outset. I can’t imagine having to wade through loads of properties on Rightmove, picking out the different charges.
mandryka
pfm Member
When tenants come in it will always be expensive, IMO there should be no additional costs when tenants leave -- unless I've forgotten something.
The corporate estate agents can be rip offs to landlords -- the cost for holding a deposit at Goodfellows, for example, annoyed me. If you do it yourself it will cost c£25 to insure the deposit, the paperwork is easy if you have an email address for the tenants, and you have the advantage of holding it. I think Goodfellows wanted to charge me more than £200. In fact their charges for other things seemed mostly reasonable -- they pass on deep cleaning and inventory at cost, for example. The cost for signing a contract is a rip off, but they have Docuserve. The next time I rent I will see whether I can do it myself before signing a contract with the agent. There are pros and cons to using a corporate, IMO more cons than pros. But if they fill the property, what can you do? ....
The big cost for me this year has been Electrical Safety checks -- the cost of this varies greatly from one electrician to another and is always too high. I've never used an agent to do it in London, I've always found my own electrician and managed it myself. But I have used an agent in Manchester and Leicester, they passed on the cost to me with no supplement. It is a nightmare.
As far as check out fees are concerned, do you mean the inventory checkout, or just getting the keys? There should be no cost from the agent for collecting the keys IMO -- it's just the tenant returning the keys to the office, if they don't cooperate charge new locks etc against their deposit. Anyway you can do it yourself if it's convenient. If the former, inventory checkout, do an inspection a few days before their last day if you can. If there are no major problems -- no walls removed, carpets or walls with huge stains which weren't there before, that sort of thing -- then I would let it go without a professional inventory check. Bear in mind the natural wear and tear you can't charge for if the tenant's been there a few years.
Remember the tenant will want to keep you happy because it's you who authorises the return of the deposit. They will probably cooperate.
Ponty
pfm Member
It has to be a full inventory check, it’s fully furnished down to the cutlery, wine glasses and paintings on the wall. All nice stuff. I’m told there is huge demand for this type of property at the moment from ‘covid break ups’ where invariably the bloke gets kicked out of the family house and can turn up with clothes and laptop and carry on working.
Had to do the electrical tests this year. The place is less than 10 years old, money for old rope.
mandryka
pfm Member
Why don't you do the inventory checkout yourself?
hifinutt
hifinutt
family break ups are HUGE reason why people need affordable rental , once house has been sold and split between 2 plus costs deducted it can be a real shock . person in this situation in tears today over this .
Ponty
pfm Member
I live a couple of hundred miles away. Plus, if there is any damage to furniture etc, there is an independent report and assessment.
russel
./_dazed_and_confused
You have a service based economy, services are going to be expensive!
hifinutt
hifinutt
all tenancies
Which rented properties do the Electrical Safety Regulations apply to?
The regulations came into force on 1 June 2020, they apply to new tenancies from 1 July 2020 and existing tenancies from 1 April 2021. The relevant date for determining when the new requirements apply is the date on which the tenancy is granted. A new tenancy is one that was granted on or after 1 June 2020.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...safety-standards-in-the-private-rented-sector
Which rented properties do the Electrical Safety Regulations apply to?
The regulations came into force on 1 June 2020, they apply to new tenancies from 1 July 2020 and existing tenancies from 1 April 2021. The relevant date for determining when the new requirements apply is the date on which the tenancy is granted. A new tenancy is one that was granted on or after 1 June 2020.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...safety-standards-in-the-private-rented-sector
mandryka
pfm Member
I had one house where the agent refused to let the new tenant in without an electrical safety certificate. Corporate agent. Old house, two bedrooms.
It was a two stage process. Stage one is where they go in and do a test and if more work needs to be done, they do a quote for stage 2.
The guy went in, said more work need to be done. All my houses are old and they've all needed work to comply -- new fuse boxes mostly. Charged me £200 for the first visit and said he wants £800 for the second, which he can't do anyway until the day before the new tenant moves in. Oh -- +VAT.
So I contacted someone else. Not initially because of the price, but because I wanted someone who would do it well before the start of the new tenancy.
This new one looked at the report from the first, said it was obvious that he hadn't done a proper job, the numbers on the report made no sense. He did the whole job for £300 in half a day no VAT.
I still had to pay the first £200 though!
I have another house where the tenant is refusing to give the electrician access to do the work.
It was a two stage process. Stage one is where they go in and do a test and if more work needs to be done, they do a quote for stage 2.
The guy went in, said more work need to be done. All my houses are old and they've all needed work to comply -- new fuse boxes mostly. Charged me £200 for the first visit and said he wants £800 for the second, which he can't do anyway until the day before the new tenant moves in. Oh -- +VAT.
So I contacted someone else. Not initially because of the price, but because I wanted someone who would do it well before the start of the new tenancy.
This new one looked at the report from the first, said it was obvious that he hadn't done a proper job, the numbers on the report made no sense. He did the whole job for £300 in half a day no VAT.
I still had to pay the first £200 though!
I have another house where the tenant is refusing to give the electrician access to do the work.
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
So glad I keep my life as simple as possible. That all sounds like life expectancy reducing hassle.
Joe Hutch
Mate of the bloke
Yep. Though I guess some people thrive on stress.
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
Some think they do. They’d live longer without it, I’d say.
Is there evidence that some people really do thrive on stress? Or is it just a matter of they enjoy the buzz/money/ego boost?
Ponty
pfm Member
This one had to be done last year as it was on periodic tenancy. Glad to have got it out of the way before all the sparks are too busy and whack their prices up. Was 185 inc VAT.
hifinutt
hifinutt
wow thats very hard if they refuse access !
most times the report comes back that it could do with a metal fuseboard but its not essential . just an advisory . obviously if you have to put a new fuseboard in it has to be metal
hifinutt
hifinutt
a bit of stress is good for you i think , not too much mind !!!
Depends, as ever. There is such a thing as a minimal stimulation level. We have all spent time at home in the last year, it is so boring that it becomes itself a source of stress. Meanwhile we have all known people who give up highly demanding jobs at a young age and take early retirement, only to become either dull, eccentric or unpleasant after a couple of years. Working keeps you young. Now maybe you don't want to have to do 50 hours a week plus travelling, but you don't want to have no function in the world.